cordialement
/kɔʁ.djal.mɑ̃/
In French, "yours truly" can be expressed as cordialement.
cordialement is used as a closing in a note or letter. It is the most common way to end a modern professional email in France, replacing many of the older, more complex closing formulas.
Meaning: closing in a note or letter (phrase)
Which one should you use?
While cordialement is a standard way to close a message, it is much less formal than the long, traditional formulas used in highly formal administrative or legal correspondence, such as je vous prie d'agréer, Monsieur/Madame, l'expression de mes salutations distinguées.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
cordialement is a standard, neutral way to close a professional or semi-formal email or letter. For professional correspondence, you might instead use phrases like Je vous adresse mes salutations distinguées or Je vous prie d'agréer, Monsieur/Madame, l'expression de ma considération distinguée.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation of cordialement is /kɔʁ.djal.mɑ̃/. It has 3 syllables.
Did you know?
- The word cordialement shares the same root as the English word 'cordial', which stems from the Latin 'cor', meaning 'heart'.
- In modern French offices, cordialement is often shortened to Cdt in quick internal email exchanges to save time.
- If a French person writes Bien cordialement instead of just cordialement, they are adding a subtle layer of warmth or friendliness to the professional tone.
Examples in context
- Je vous prie d'agréer, Madame Lambert, l'expression de ma considération distinguée.Yours truly, Pierre Tremblay
- Je vous adresse mes salutations distinguées.Yours truly, Sophie Martin
- Amicalement, ThierryYours truly, Thierry
- Cordialement, NathalieYours truly, Nathalie
- Amitiés, MarcYours truly, Marc
- Cordialement,Yours truly,
Example conversation
Hugo is sending a brief professional email to Emma.
- HugoBonjour Emma, voici le document.Hello Emma, here is the document.
- EmmaMerci Hugo, j'ai bien reçu le mail.Thank you Hugo, I received the email.
- HugoParfait, cordialement.Perfect, yours truly.
- EmmaÀ bientôt.See you soon.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry cordialement, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cordialement, CC BY-SA 4.0.
